A restaurant owner has been very successful opening new restaurants in the United States. However, he would now like to open a restaurant in China. Since he does not have enough money to open the restaurant on his own, he convinces several friends to help him pay the costs. If the restaurant succeeds, the owner and his friends will share the profits. If it fails, however, all of them will split the losses. This situation is most similar to which of the following?
A.An imperialist company B.A mercantilist company C.A joint-stock company D.An agricultural company